Scars quotes for each poem

‘I’m acting the lady, but - i ain’t living bad.’

Munition wages - this shows how the work that women were doing throughout the war greatly improved their living standards

‘Afraid? Are yer kidding?’

Munition wages - there had to be some bravery when working with explosives and dangerous chemicals, shows the women to be just as brave as the men

‘I’ll have repaid mi wages in death - and pass by.’

Munition wages - the speaker accepts the fact that her work is dangerous and accepts the risk for the money, gives a more surface level look onto women during the war

‘And they forget how others stayed behind and just go on’

The lament of the demobilised - shows how not all soldiers made it back from the war and that all the sacrifice that was made was for nothing and never thanked

‘We came home’

The lament of the demobilised - this showed that the soldiers expected to be somewhere safe but instead where met with difficulty and distain

‘We’re beginning to agree with them’

The lament of the demobilised - the attitudes towards war has changed and the soldiers are now realising that they were tricked

‘Perhaps some day i shall not shrink in pain’

Perhaps- Shows how she hopes to slowly heal from the loss of Roland, that she will adjust to the pain she feels

‘Though you have passed away’

Perhaps- It is a constant reminder in her mind, the memory of him will never leave her as he was apart of her

‘But, though kind time may many joys renew’

Perhaps- personifying time as a kind and benevolent healer, their is some sort of anger as time with Roland was taken away from her

‘Your battle-wounds are scars upon my heart’

To my brother - they are connected to each other and she will forever carry around the grief of losing him with her, the scars will never heal

‘Two years ago’

To my brother - another constant reminder of time, said at the end of every stanza. Shows that time can be irrelevant when it comes ro grief

‘I see the symbol of your courage glow’

To my brother - he will always be remembered for his courage and sacrifice, but maybe that isnt as good as you may think

‘But now, their hands, their fingers are coarsened in munition factories’

Women at munition making - the work done by women during the war has defeminised them and taken away their essence of motherhood and femininity

‘Kill, kill’ they must take part in defacing and destroying the natural body’

Women at munition making - war is unnatural so by helping to build war weapons everyone is now contributing to the death of millions

‘Mount like a poison to the creators very heart’

Women at munition making - the war is killing all of gods creations which is poisoning his good work making war the ultimate enemy of the world

‘How glows my heart at the hot thought of battles glorious throes!’

Subalterns - this shows how some women glorified war as they had no knowledge of the horrors experienced on the front line, it gives an idea of how many people were tricked with propaganda

‘For us who fought are icy memories’

Subalterns - the soldiers who have returned from war are traumatised and they now want to shut any memory away so they are trying to freeze them away

‘The war gave one a shake somehow, knocked one awake’

Subalterns - the war was a way to make humankind just how violent we can be and also show how violence should not be the answer to solving a dispute. This could also reference how many men now where changed mentally from the war

‘It might have been better in that grim trench to die’

Pluck - the idea of living with the trauma from war seems a worse fate them dying because if they had died they would be free from the horrors of surviving

‘That none may see his heart-sick fear. His shaking, strangled sobs you hear.’

Pluck - the aftermath of war for the soldiers was hidden away as to keep us the image that war was still a good thing and that men would be find if they went to war. Some soldiers also wanted to be remember as brave and seem unaffected

He’ll face us all, a soldier yet’

Pluck - the young solider is still developing and this trauma and sudden impact has caused him to grow up too fast and lose his innocence

‘Bugles, bugles, bugles’

Pierrot goes to war - this is a childlike way to asking or being excited for something showing how many soldier were just young boys especially those who lied about their age to join the war as they wanted all the glory they were promised

‘They whom death, saluting, called upon to die’

Pierrot goes to war - many men were killed in war, this number of casualties caused a shift i the attitude towards war. Death became a friend of war.

‘Pierrot goes forward - but what of Pierrette?’

Pierrot goes to war - many women, mothers and children were left behind on the home front and many fathers would not return home leaving the mothers to look after their family or lovers full of grief and shock

‘For he’s off to war and away.’

The three lads - many were tricked into going to war as it was presented as a positive experience, but many did not come home, this was universal experience.

‘Into the distance grey’

The three lads - the ‘grey’ could symbolise death as it is a bleak ending and unclear path for the soliders

‘Through the dank, dark night he rides to his death’

The three lads - the war was a rough and traumatising journey.

‘O hungry swamps of Flanders that swallow up mens lives!’

The battle of the swamps - flanders was the resting place of many men, the earth might have become hungry for blood as revenge for the war destroying it

‘Suffocating clay!’

The battle of the swamps - the clay could symbolise the propaganda moving the soldiers to behave and think a certain way so much so they lost all sense of their morals

‘O deathless swamps of Flanders, out hearts are with our men’

The battle of the swamps - this could be seen as very ironic, they call flanders ‘deathless’ when it is laced with the body of thousands of men. Saying the false attitude of saying their hearts are with the men when they are only being sent there to die

‘Oh! Exasperating woman, id like to wring your neck’

The jingo-woman - jingo women were relentless with shaming men for not signing up for war, they never gave up.

‘Keen and malignant’

The jingo-woman - the idea of shaming spread everywhere, it became passive aggressive leading to more men signing up which lead to more death

‘You’ll join up first, of course’

The jingo-woman - if they could shame men for not signing up they should have no problem with signing up themselves

‘As in a dream, still hearing machine-guns rattle and shells scream’

War film - war followed everyone, the trauma, the death, the loss. It almost created a haze like state for most people.

‘Rotting in no man’s land, out in the rain’

War film - there usually no comfort for men dying, they were alone or lost.

‘He thought it was a game and laughed, and laughed’

War film - the next generation had no clue what war was like and it is better to protect them

‘Say, what reward for him?’

What reward? - those who lost their lives got no recognition or reward for their sacrifice showing that they were just cattle for slaughter

‘One has found his rest’

What reward? - they can finally rest and forget the war, they are finally at peace after being frightened for so long

‘O god, for such a sacrifice’

What reward? - sacrifice can be seen as cowardice

‘Twelve months ago they marched into the grey’

The movies - the grey shows that they were doomed from the start and that the war has lasted a lot longer than planned causing all energy and passion for it to disappear

‘Eager and young and bold’

The movies - many soldiers were just young boys excited to fight for their country but many did not return this way or return at all. The lost generation.

‘Then i remember, and my heart grows cold!’

The movies - the memory of war caused a period of pain, depression and grief. War was no longer good, it was terrifying

‘Billy, the soldier boy!’

He went for a soldier - this shows that many soldiers were only young but were convinced by the glamourisation of the war

‘The music drowned his doubt’

He went for a soldier - the propaganda allowed for people to be tricked into supporting the war, it played a key part in rallying enough troops

‘How much longer, o lord, shall we bear it all?’

He went for a soldier - this is the voice of “Billy” who could symbolise all the soldiers who just wanted peace and to die instead of bearing the war any longer

‘Are you, my laddie?’

The call - the familiar language tricks the soldiers into feeling like they belong in the army with their friends.

‘Who’ll earn the empires thanks-‘

The call - this was one of promises made by the government for people joining up to the war

‘Who wants to save his skin’

The call - this is to shame those who refused to sign up for war, a subtly dig to try and mobilise their guilt

‘Strong, sensible and fit they’re out to show their grit’

War girls - this is to show how the war was an opportunity for women to show that they could also do men’s jobs and do them well

‘They’ve no time for love and kisses’

War girls - the war was a time for repair and work, no time for family and growing

‘Till the khaki soldier boys come marching back.’

War girls - their time at work was limited so they had to make the most of it whilst they could

‘He’s but a remnant of a man, maimed and half-blind’

The broken soldier - the war not only took away some peoples stable mentality but also caused physical harm which served as a constant reminder of what they have been through

‘The gay would goes singing like a bird set free’

The broken soldier - singing was done in the trenches to keep moral high and keep the soldiers calm, so the singing could be a coping mechanism

‘The soul in the broken man is beautiful and brave’

The broken soldier - even though the war was traumatic many soldiers tried to return to normality and some were even fine when they returned. War didn’t break everyone

‘One day they will forget the graves’

A girls song - the memory of those who have sacrificed themselves will slowly be forgotten but it shouldn’t be as their deaths serve as a reminder why war shouldn’t ever happen again

‘My grief is in the weeping rains’

A girls song - the weather reflects te grieving nation, the healing process is complicated

‘For here my dear love lies asleep’

A girls song - it at be better to think of lose lost to be asleep and not dead as the reality may to be harsh to bear

‘Food for shells and guns.’

Joining the colours - many soldiers were sent to war with no intentions for them to return, the war was hungry for blood which was split in gallons

‘Singing they go into the dark’

Joining the colours - the soldiers who fought should be remembered for their joy and bravery, not how they died

‘Into the mist singing they pass’

Joining the colours - the singing should be a constant reminder of what was lost, those who died should forever be remembered for their bravery